By Robert S. Waldman

Auto accidents happen all the time. In fact, statistics confirm that most of us have either been involved in a car accident or know someone who has. We also know that injuries from car accidents can be very serious, even if the injured victim doesn’t break a bone or have a more ‘obvious’ injury.

How you handle the accident can make a big difference later on down the road. In Pennsylvania, the ability to make a claim for pain, suffering and lost wages and property damages are governed by the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Responsibility Law (MVFRL). The MVFRL outlines each person’s rights and, depending upon the type of insurance you have, whether you are entitled to recover damages for pain and suffering. For example, whether YOU purchased limited tort or full-tort coverage has a huge impact upon whether you will be able to be compensated for your pain and suffering. But once you are in the accident, you can’t change your insurance coverage. Instead, there a few things you should do.

First, always write down the time and place (intersection, city, streets, and other landmarks) where the accident occurred. Next, get the name, address and driver’s license number of each driver involved in the accident – and get the names, addresses and phone numbers of every witness to the accident. Also, you should write down the make and model of each other car involved in the accident, as well as the license plate number. In addition, take a picture of your car and each other car; your cell phone probably has a camera. If you believe you are injured, you should also be sure that the police are notified about the accident and that they came to the scene and created a police report. If you do these things, you can later prove that you and the other vehicles were present at the scene.

Next, notify your insurance company. Tell the company about the accident so that it has a record of the claim. In addition, if you think you were hurt, tell the police officer and your insurance company – no matter how serious or minor you think your injuries are. That way, if you really start hurting a day or a week later, there is a record of your complaints. That doesn’t mean to say you are hurt if you weren’t. If you’re fortunate to escape the accident without injury, be glad. Also, if you have any concerns about your health, go to your family doctor or to the Emergency Room and get treated. Sometimes people think they aren’t hurt and turn out to be seriously injured. Protect yourself.

If you take these basic steps, and later make a claim seeking compensation for your pain and suffering and other injuries, the defendants will be more likely to believe you and won’t argue that you weren’t hurt because you didn’t go directly to the Emergency Room. Remember, being involved in a car accident is serious, and you should always do everything you can to protect your rights.

This Pennsylvania personal injury law tip is provided by the Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery County automobile accident, workers’ compensation and personal law office of Attorney Robert S. Waldman, 1800 JFK Blvd., Suite 1500, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103, phone: 215.545.4040, website – http://www.lawonyourside.net, or email rwaldman@lawonyourside.net.

About the Author: Philadelphia personal injury and workers’ compensation attorney Robert S. Waldman has fought for the rights of injured persons for over 30 years. He concentrates his practice in workers’ compensation, auto accident and other personal injury matters. His website is Law On Your Side.

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By Dick Harkes

So Soon?

Legal issues on Alzheimer’s and Financial Planning come your way before you would notice it. Therefore it’s important to think about when to start arranging these matters when a person has the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Keep in mind that the ability to make proper judgments declines as time goes by. In the early stage of the disease you are very well capable to make the right decisions on all of the financial and legal issues on Alzheimer’s Disease. When you just wait and see what happens, you will be too late to make the necessary arrangements by yourself.

There is a number of issues to deal with. We present the most important ones in this article and advise you to consult someone who is specialized in these matters (especially where legal issues are involved).

Your Signature And Its Legality

In the first stages of Alzheimer’s Disease you are very well capable of making your own decisions on signing official documents and contracts. Even the law (through a legal verdict) endorses this.

How hard it is, you should be aware of the fact that other times will come. Then you’ll no longer be able to independently judge the legal issues because of the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease.

At some point you might be placed under guardianship because you really won’t be able to judge well and to bear all responsibilities. Therefore we advise you to start in time with the very important long term care and disability planning after the diagnosis.

Take Care Of The Future

Starting in time with all arrangements for the time you won’t be able to do this yourself gives you the opportunity to participate in decisions like health care and financial matters, including plans for long-term care. All decisions can be written down and signed by you. Maybe you have to go to a notary to make certain legal records.

Starting in time gives you the opportunity to really make your own decisions and to take care of your loved ones at the moment you aren’t able to by yourself. You can also decide yourself on who to authorize to make decisions on behalf of you.

What Do You Need?

Next to a notary for your will, you may also need an attorney for a number of documents for the period in which others should care for you. As you plan for the future, ask the attorney about the following documents:

–

Power of Attorney

At the moment you cannot make your own decisions anymore someone or some people need to take care of that. You can write down in a power of attorney who you prefer to take those responsible tasks. It speaks for itself that you have talked about his with these people. In the power of attorney you write down exactly who will be responsible for what issues.

–

Power of Attorney for Health Care

Like stated before, it is possible to assign different issues in different roles within your power of attorney. There is a good reason to make a separate power of attorney for health care. Whether you appoint the same person from the other issues to also take care for your health care issues or you want to appoint another person for the health care issues isn’t important. In the power of attorney for healthcare you appoint a person to make all decisions regarding health care, including choices regarding health care providers, medical treatment, and, in the later stages of the disease, end-of-life decisions.

–

Living Will or Advanced Directives

A living will is a legal document to make known your wishes only regarding life prolonging medical treatments.

A living will informs your family and your health care providers about your wishes for medical treatment in the situation you are not able to make these clear by yourself.

In the main, a living will describes what your wishes are concerning certain life prolonging treatments. You declare in this Living Will which treatments you do or do not want to be carried out in the event you either will be in a terminal stage or are in a permanent vegetative state.

A living will only becomes effective when you are incapable to speak out your wishes. In all other situations you can still decide on what treatments you do or don’t want.

A living will is only used when your ultimate recovery is hopeless.

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Living Trusts

Under a Living Trust you arrange how another person or a bank, called a trustee, holds legal title to property for you, the beneficiary.

The goal is to carefully invest and manage trust assets once the beneficiary is no longer able to manage finances because of cognitive impairment.

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A Will or a Testament

Is a legal document to specify who will inherit your property after you die. Without a will, you will have no say in what happens to your property. To draw up a will you need an experienced wills and trusts lawyer to advise you in all of your estate planning needs.

Let People Involved Know About the Documents

Be sure people know about all of these documents. That’s the only way to get these legal issues on Alzheimer’s working at the necessary moment. Your doctor and the person you designate as your health care proxy have to know about them. Speak with your doctor not only about the existence of the documents but also about the content.

Even better if you’ve already talked about the subjects during the drafting of the documents. He or she can help you by answering all questions you have about certain treatments.

Once you’ve decided what it is you do or don’t want, make your wishes known to both your doctor and your family.

About the Author: Dick Harkes was confronted with Alzheimers Disease when his father was diagnosed with this awful ailment. Then he started collecting information about Alzheimers. He likes to share this information with everybody. Please visit

Legal Issues Alzheimer’s

. Or start at his homepage:

All About Alzheimers Disease

.

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